Armenian Assembly of America
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PRESS RELEASE

March 17, 2009
Contact: Michael A Zachariades
Email: mzachariades@aaainc.org
Phone: (202) 393-3434

INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GENOCIDE SCHOLARS ISSUES OPEN LETTER TO
PRESIDENT OBAMA, URGES ARMENIAN GENOCIDE AFFIRMATION

Washington, DC – Last week, in an open letter to President Barack Obama,
the International Association of Genocide Scholars, the leading
organization of scholars who study genocide, urged Obama to "refer to
the mass slaughter of Armenians as genocide in your commemorative
statement," adding that it was what "you urged President George W. Bush
to do in a letter dated March 18, 2005," reported the Armenian Assembly
of America (Assembly).

"By acknowledging the Armenian Genocide," the letter reads, "you would
demonstrate that you are that ‘leader’ you referred to on January 19,
2008, who ‘speaks truthfully about the Armenian Genocide and responds
forcefully to all genocides’." Moreover, "you would signal a new chapter
in U.S. diplomacy. You would also honor the truth of our own valiant
history, which saw brave and selfless Foreign Service Officers risk
their lives rescuing Armenians during the Genocide and compiling the
more than 40,000 pages of documentation now housed in the National
Archives."

In regard to Turkey’s refusal to acknowledge its history, the letter
reads, "We also believe that it is in the interest of the Turkish people
and their future as participants in international, democratic discourse
to acknowledge the responsibility of a previous government for the
genocide of the Armenian people, just as the German government and
people have done in the case of the Holocaust. Over the past decade a
growing number of Turkish scholars, writers, intellectuals, and
publishers have been risking imprisonment and assassination to tell the
truth about the Armenian Genocide. They understood that facing and
accepting the history of one’s country, however dark, is an essential
part of growing a healthy democracy.

"We believe that security and historical truth are not in conflict, and
it is in the interest of the United States to support the principles of
human rights that are at the core of American democracy."

"President Obama’s upcoming trip to Turkey presents a unique opportunity
to address this critical human rights issue and the irreversible trend
toward its reaffirmation. We applaud the International Association of
Genocide Scholars and its President, Gregory Stanton, for its open
letter and its steadfast support of the importance of historical
accuracy as one method of countering the problem of genocide denial,"
stated Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny.

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest
Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding
and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt
membership organization.

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NR#2009-015

Editor’s Note: The complete text of the letter is available here.
IAGS_Obama_Letter.pdf